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A Florida judge has denied an imprisoned sex offender's request that he be castrated at the expense of the state.

The Ocala Star-Banner reports that the man is serving a 10-year sentence after pleading no contest to second-degree felony sexual battery.

In a handwritten motion, the 35-year-old inmate asked a circuit court judge to modify his sentence to include castration.

The court denied the motion, saying it did not have jurisdiction in the case.

KEY WEST

Judge removed for strange behavior

A circuit judge in the Florida Keys has filed for medical leave after his erratic behavior on the bench prompted courtroom deputies to remove him from the court during a trial.

The Florida Keys Citizen reported Saturday that Circuit Judge Tegan Slaton was removed from the bench Friday. Officials said the judge appeared incoherent and disheveled during the court proceedings.

Slaton has previously fallen asleep during a court a hearing. The judge later told the newspaper that he fell asleep because of medication he had taken to deal with gastrointestinal problems and other medical issues.

Robert Cintron, Slaton's campaign manager, told the newspaper that Slaton had filed for medical leave. Cintron declined to discuss Slaton's upcoming judicial race, saying he was focused instead on his friend's health.

LEESBURG

Missing man actually jailed in Florida

The family of an apparently missing Kansas City man spent weeks and drove more than 1,200 miles in an effort to find him before learning that he has been in a Florida jail since July.

The Leesburg Daily Commercial reports that the Kansas City man was arrested and taken to the Marion County jail after a trespassing incident on July 7.

His family drove from Kansas city and distributed missing-person flyers throughout central Florida in an effort to find him. An Ocala-area church helped in the search. A person who saw one of the fliers called the family and told them the man they were looking for was in jail.

GRAYTON BEACH

Man walks into photo, wedding turns violent

Panhandle authorities say an accidental photo bomb of a wedding by a man collecting beach lounge chairs led to a brawl between the man and the wedding party.

The man was removing his rental lounge chairs from a stretch of beach at the end of the day, and accidentally showed up in the background of some wedding photos.

Witnesses told the Walton County Sheriff's office that words were exchanged between the man and the members of the wedding party before they began to attack him. The sheriff's office said the man declined to file charges against any members of the wedding party.